Housing woes in the Bay Area have become so severe that two out of three residents now believe it”s tougher to find a place to live, and at least half are ready to embrace higher-density housing in their neighborhoods to help tackle the problem, a poll released Thursday shows.

The poll by the Bay Area Council found that 67 percent of residents in the nine-county region believe finding a place to live is more difficult now than it was a year ago, and 50 percent support more housing, even if it means their city might become more packed with residents.

“The economy in the Bay Area could be hurt by the lack of affordable housing,” said Tracey Grose, vice president of the Bay Area Council”s Economic Institute. “It will be harder for employers in the Bay Area to recruit people. We are already seeing some evidence of that.”

What”s more, 76 percent of residents want policy makers and developers to direct their efforts toward the creation of certain types of housing. Specifically, respondents want the focus on housing for low- and middle-income people.

It”s another sign that some Bay Area residents are willing to jettison their long-held anti-growth sentiments that are often dubbed “not in my backyard,” or NIMBY.

“It”s good that residents are willing to embrace higher density,” said Christopher Thornberg, a founding partner with Beacon Economics. “That should have been happening a while ago.”

Higher-density housing development was supported by 56 percent of Santa Clara County residents, 55 percent of Alameda County residents and 53 percent of San Francisco residents, according to the poll.

Asked about whether they would accept housing in their own neighborhoods, an affirmative response came from 61 percent of San Francisco residents, 59 percent in Alameda County and 58 percent in Santa Clara County.

“Water isn”t the only thing that is in short supply in the Bay Area,” said Jim Wunderman, president of the Bay Area Council. “Our region is growing, our economy is humming, but the housing shortage could be our Achilles heel.”

Wunderman called for the housing problems to receive the same decisive action that”s being undertaken statewide to combat the drought.